Twisted
by Kamikaze Wraith
Summary: Just because something isn't finished doesn't mean it shouldn't be read. This is a compilation of all the Vandread fics and concepts my mind has produced: genetically enhanced!Hibiki, demon possessed!Hibiki, Hibiki: Red Emperor of Tarak, it's all here.R
1. Ghost, Version 1: Cloaked Blade

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own Vandread.**

Full Summary: AU. NonYaoi. Hibiki/Many. Takes place 2 years after the Second Stage. While on Tarak to recruit men for the "experiment" on the _Nirvana_, Hibiki is presented with an offer: to help on a secret government-funded mission to "explore the neighboring systems and find signs of non-human life". Why he has been chosen to be given this offer to is unknown to him, but he rashly accepts it, leaving his friends, both on Tarak and on the _Nirvana_ behind, with little in the way of information except that he's been hired for something, and that he'd be back. This sends him on a course that would eventually change almost everything about him, from his appearance, to the way he looks at life. Two years later, he returns, his mission accomplished… all his innocence and ignorance lost, and replaced by a mature mind, more power than he ever had before, and the overpowering will to do _anything_ to survive, should he, once again, face the horrors he encountered on the exploration mission.

**Prologue: Thoughts from a Troubled Mind**

_"Beware, hunter of monsters, lest you become a monster yourself. For as you gaze into the Abyss, the Abyss also gazes into you." _

_- FREDERIC WILHELM NIETZSCHE_

**Hibiki Tokai's quarters, military transport ship SV-3000**…

What makes a man a man? Is it his accomplishments or his thoughts or even the way he lives his life? Or something else… something _more_?

I know not. There's quite a chance that I never will.

By far, the greatest of my accomplishments in these last two years is that now I can call myself a man, and know that I am saying the truth. I am a child no longer, despite my age, and that can be told simply by a glance. I know it, and the people I've met since the end of the two-year mission that changed my life know it, and don't question it.

To some that may sound like arrogance, but I know myself well enough to know that it isn't. Not after all I've done.

However, even though I know that I _am_ a man, I still don't know just _what _makes me one, and I truly can't help but wonder…

Suddenly, a yawn coming forth from my lungs interrupts my thoughts. I let it go on, while I stretch on my chair.

Needless to say, I'm rather tired. I have barely slept since three days ago, when I finally boarded this ship, finally headed for the _Nirvana_.

I simply couldn't bring myself to it. The thoughts of finally going home (for indeed, there was a point in my mission when I finally realized that the pirate ship truly was the closest thing to a home I've ever had since I left my Grandfather- er… Uncle's house, where I grew up) simply wouldn't leave my mind, and made me restless throughout my time in this transport ship, disturbing my sleep. And now, only a few hours before the transport ship finally arrived to Mejerran orbital space, which was the current location of the _Nirvana_, I could barely even close my eyes, much less go to sleep. In an attempt to calm myself enough to get some rest, I went to my desk and poured myself a glass of vodka from an old bottle, the last of the small stock I found inside a preserving compartment in the ruins of a colonist ship almost two years ago. Now, with alcohol at less than an arm's reach, I took my old pen and started writing on the last pages of my third diary, last of the three little blank books I found on the same colonist ship as the vodka. As I wrote about what had happened since I boarded the transport ship and about how I was finally going home, the realization that I had changed in ways that no one would have ever expected me to hit me. I wanted to go home… but would home accept me? Truly, in many ways, I am my old self. I'm still able to laugh, show affection, all those things. However, even though a fair share of the core of my old personality remains, many things have changed. I am… jaded, now. I've seen so many horrible things… experienced so much pain… and killed, yes, _killed_ so many people who stood in the way of the mission. They hadn't been good people, far from it actually, but still, I killed them. I did something to them that two years ago, at the beginning of the mission, I would have never imagined doing to even my worst enemy. Even those of Earth shed no blood, seeing as their fleets were made of machines.

And then another thought hit me…

'_I've done all those things…but there is something more. Something that wasn't there before the mission… it seems to be of little importance when I think of it, but I know that it's not, that it truly does matter…'_

I'd say it's easy to guess what came afterwards.

'_After all I've done, I've gained a particular quality: I can call myself a man now, and know that it is not a lie.'_

And that led to my current train of thought, as I analyzed just what elements of the mission had made me a man… and then went on to analyzing just what elements of my _life _itself had made me a man.

That wasn't to long ago, and now I sit at my desk, yawn having passed, thinking of what made me a man.

Was it my appearance?

I grab my (until now) almost completely untouched glass of vodka and stare at the liquid. My reflection stares right back at me.

I sigh. I have changed so much… I was sixteen when I left Tarak for the mission, and I'm eighteen now, two years later. However, I don't look like it. In fact, my appearance is that of a man in his mid twenties. My features recall how I looked before the mission, but they look more mature than back then, and I'm much taller now. In conclusion, I look young, but nowhere near as young as I should be.

How is that possible? A question most would be asking themselves by now.

The answer: etherum gas. No, it has nothing to do with ether. It is just a name coined by Taraaku scientists for an especially designed "aging gas" which was supposed to be used as a weapon.

As fate would have it, I and a few others happened to be in the same room as the gas when, due to negligence by a trainee scientist who was later executed, the containers holding the gas burst, and everyone inside the room started to feel its effects as the gas filled the room. To make things worse, the gas seemed to act as a corrosive for metal, completely oxidizing the doors of the room, preventing any escape and making the air vents useless.

When we were finally rescued, I was one of the first to get out, having been there for around forty minutes. There were some who ended up being there for around three to four hours. Most of them survived, but the eldest ones ended up crumbling to dust, their bodies incapable of aging more while still alive, and unable to resist the effects of the gas.

Indeed, I have to be grateful for the fact that I was so young back then (the mission being only on its third month, which was when I turned seventeen), and that the gas was only on an early experimental stage, and was nowhere near as potent as was planned for it to be. Otherwise I wouldn't be here, thinking of these things.

Sighing, I down the vodka in one go and put the empty glass on the desk.

Even though my new appearance certainly makes me look better, I doubt that it is the thing that made me a man.

My power, perhaps?

I look now at my C-10 Canister Rifle, resting against my bedside table, and then at the loaded handgun placed on the table itself, where I have left it after getting out of bed (yes, I sleep with it). I really shouldn't have left it there, so far from myself, but I am quiet capable of defending myself without it.

This leads me to my other weapon.

I shake back my black shirt's sleeve from my right arm and stare at the back of my wrist, a fleeting thought registering just how well it melds with the back of my hand.

Concentrating on activating the mechanism, I flick my wrist…

And a long metal blade rips the thin skin, extending itself fully from the implanted sheath on my arm.

It hurts, and it may seem rather archaic, but it (and its twin on my left arm) saved my life many times during the mission.

Another flick. The blade goes back in. Some sort of white foam comes out of the wound, covering it. It burns me a bit (without causing injury) for a few seconds, and then evaporates. All traces of the wound are gone.

One may wonder how this happened to me, obviously, but the answer would be something unheard of for most of Tarak's population and completely unknown by the Mejerrans.

The Ghost Project.

Around the start of the second year of the mission, everything had gone well. I knew just what the mission was _truly _about, and everyone on the ship we were in was prepared for what could happen.

At least that was what we thought when we arrived on government orders at a science facility built on one of the fringe worlds of a solar system located at a moderate distance from the Mejer-Tarak system.

There we were welcomed by the scientists in the facility, and after we explained our mission (having been explicitly told by the government official who sent the transmission that told us to go there to do that), and the scientists checked our names and identifications on their database, the lead scientist was glad to explain what they were doing on the facility. I remember what he said word by word.

"_This facility was created soon after the defeat of Earth, and its original purpose was to develop new weapons technology for Tarak. Then we learned of _them_, and what they could do. That was when we were commissioned by the Taraaku government to find a way to enhance our soldiers, not only using external technology, but also using implants and genetic enhancements. In short, to create the perfect warrior. This project was codenamed the "Ghost Project" after one of the implants we designed, which generates an invisibility field around the user. Just a few days ago, we finished the primary technology needed for the Ghost Project, and told the government of our success. However, we need at least one test subject to test the technology on. Because you were the closest ship in this system, and to spare themselves the nuisance of seeking volunteers elsewhere in the military, thus endangering the secrecy of this project, the government sent you and your ship here, gentlemen, to provide us with at least one volunteer. The government told us to warn you that if all of you refuse, you will all be kicked out of the military."_

The crew of the particular ship I was in was primarily made of scientists and young first-classers. As could be predicted, all of the young first-classers and most of the scientists refused to volunteer, aware of the danger of genetic experiments. There were some scientists (mostly the leads of the projects inside of our ship) that would cut off an arm in the name of science, and they volunteered. They, however, were deemed as "too valuable", and prevented from participating in the technological tests.

That only left two volunteers. One was doing it out of duty and a desire to serve the Tarak Empire… and the other was doing it out of sheer foolishness and misguided bravery.

The first was our ship's fiercely patriotic Captain, Allan Grey. Even though he was nearing his sixties, as indicated by his graying hair, he was a tall, strong man, with muscles bulging out of his shirt.

Strangely enough, it was this that prevented him from performing the tests.

"_I'm sorry Captain Grey, but your age and size prevent us from performing the tests on you. You see, the specifications for a Ghost's physique sent to us by the government were of someone young, of light weight, and with the ability to be stealthy with the proper training. Even though your vital statistics are impressive, you don't fit the specifications."_

That left only the other volunteer, Hibiki Tokai.

Myself.

You see, at that time, even though my appearance had already changed by then, and I had received a lot of knowledge from both briefings and some of the more interesting archives on the ship I was traveling in, my mind had not really changed to what it is now. I was still a rash, loudmouthed fool who was as undisciplined as you can get and who couldn't follow orders if his life depended on it.

And I also happened to be the best candidate for the Ghost Project out of all those who volunteered.

"_Perfect! Perfect! The right age, lightweight, stealthy, even…you, my friend, are perfectly suited for the tests. Come now, let us start! We have no time to waste, no time at all!"_

I am ashamed to admit it, but I actually felt proud at that time. I had been chosen, I had been told I was better than everyone…

I was such a fool.

And so, I let them lead me to their laboratory, where they performed all sorts of physical tests on me, culminating on the event that changed my life forever: when they decided it was enough, that I was ready for the real tests, and injected a powerful anesthetic on my body, knocking me out.

When I woke up, days later, I was a completely different person.

Even though on the outside I looked the same, inside was totally different.

DNA manipulation made me stronger, faster; my hearing and sense of smell were better, and hidden implants on my eyes gave me eyesight as good as a bird of prey's when activated. The wristblades implanted on my arms made sure that I always had a weapon with me, and the cloaking implant on the inside of the left side of my torso was designed to make me invisible with a simple press of my fingers on the right area.

I was a living weapon.

When the scientists explained it to me I wasn't sure about what to do or what to feel.

The experiment had been a success… no human being in or near the Mejer-Tarak system was stronger than me in any way, shape, or form.

However, the very structure of my being had been manipulated, changed through a process that could very well mean the death of the subject if there were any mistakes or miscalculations in the procedure… indeed, the scientists had taken the risk of my demise quite lightly.

At that moment, however, I was far too shocked to be angry, and soon after, I was taken away from the lab where I woke up to a conditioning room for training on my new… abilities.

"_You have power Mr. Tokai, for the experiments performed on you were a complete success. However, you do not know how to use that power just yet, rendering it useless. Come now, let us bring you to the training room, were we will teach you…"_

Though I certainly did learn the basics from the scientists, I obtained _true _knowledge over a long and arduous year of incessant fighting. A year that tainted the better part of me... forever.

Ah, grim thoughts... I shouldn't be thinking them right now, not when all I want is to get some sleep…

And still, even after having analyzed my power thoroughly I doubt that is what truly makes me, or anyone else for that matter, a man…

There's a very long list of possibilities, but-

Another yawn.

I'm tired now, and soon I will go home… perhaps the reactions of the people there will allow me to find the answer to this question I have posed myself with.

But until then, all I can do is hope that, no matter what I am or what makes me what I am, my friends will still be my friends when I get back…

A/N: And that's it. Nothing mayor was re-written here, but I fixed a few glaring mistakes.

-KW


	2. Ghost, Version 1: Arrival

**Disclaimer: Me? Own Vandread? I wish…**

A/N: The revised version of Chapter 1. I fixed some descriptions and patched some minor holes. It's all good now.

Oh, and for the record:

Locations

"_Transmissions"_

'_Thoughts'_

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**Chapter I: Homecoming**

**Hibiki Tokai's quarters, three hours later**…

As the Taraaku transport ship SV-3000 entered Mejerran orbital space, Hibiki Tokai stood by a desk inside his quarters, a handgun placed on a holster on his left hip and a canister rifle hanging from his right one, having been strapped to his body with care. Usually the rifle would be simply strapped to his back, where access to it was far easier, but he would soon arrive home and it wouldn't do for the pirates to see that he had a deadly rifle with him. The way he had set his weapons would make sure that his regular outfit would hide them.

'_And about the outfit…'_

Quickly he opened the first drawer from his desk and extracted two black gloves made of some strange, velvety material that was actually incredibly though. They had been specially designed for handling weapons and delicate technology, and had been given to him by the scientists of the Ghost Project. Without much thought he closed the drawer and put the gloves on, which matched his black shirt, pants, and boots perfectly.

'_Just one last thing…'_

He walked through the room and reached a medium-sized metal wardrobe. With a snap of his fingers the wardrobe's doors slid open, revealing a long black trench coat and a matching, wide brimmed black hat hanging side by side on similar hooks. Unlike the rest of his outfit, these two pieces of clothing had been the last part of his share of the "loot" from the ruins of the old colonist ship, having been the last things he found before being sent back to his own ship. At first he had worn them out of stubbornness, looking completely ridiculous, since the coat and hat didn't match his personality at all, even if they did fit him thanks to the gas incident. Soon after he became a Ghost, however, that started changing, and by the end of the mission they suited his now entirely black clothes and his usually grim mood perfectly.

With a small sigh he put the coat on and placed the hat low over his face, closing the wardrobe's doors afterwards.

Then, without doing anything else, Hibiki Tokai left his quarters on the transport ship SV-3000 for good, eager to get home.

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**Military transport pod, Mejerran orbital space, an hour later**…

Hibiki Tokai stood tall inside the small transport pod that he had been sent on from the ship he had been in, looking through its windows at the floating teal dot that gave away the position of the _Nirvana_, which he was now rapidly approaching. Technically, someone of his rank (the son of Lord Grandpa, even if he himself had some difficulty considering himself as that) should have been delivered by the actual transport ship, but he had specifically asked to be brought to the _Nirvana _with as little ceremony as possible. In fact, the pirates didn't even know that he was coming, by his own choice. Setting up surprises like this wasn't in his nature, but he wanted to see their reactions, and had the power to do so, so why not do it? It was harmless anyway.

Still, now was not the time for such thoughts, not when he was just nearing home.

'_I can see it clearly now…'_

And indeed, he could. As he approached the location of the _Nirvana _the teal dot he had first seen had given way to a sleek, shining teal ship. Around the ship flew several smaller, highly stylized ships, apparently following a set of complex formations in quick succession…

'_Dread formation maneuvers! I hadn't counted on those…'_

Seeing as during his first stay on the _Nirvana _there had been more than a hundred female pirates, he had not met everyone personally, and if the team that happened to be practicing outside of the _Nirvana _happened to be led by someone he didn't know well, gaining entrance into the ship would be far more difficult.

Cursing himself for that small lack of foresight, he analyzed his options in case he encountered difficulty with the Dread teams.

The thing is he didn't have any options to start with.

He sighed.

'_I guess I'll just have to wait and hope for the best…'_

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**Barnette's Dread, outside of the **_**Nirvana**_…

When we last saw Barnette Orangello, soon after the defeat of Earth, she was a woman of strong spirit, bad temper, and a tendency to mistrust men, even though the latter had rather diminished after her forced co-habitation with the three men on the _Nirvana_.

But that was then. After two years she was bound to change, right?

Wrong.

Her temper and spirit were the same, and even after her first experience with men, and then when Dita, Bart, and Duero had brought a team of handpicked men from Tarak, among other things, her mistrust of men had yet to disappear, even if it had diminished into something far less than what it once was.

So yes, the Dread pilot now currently leading the training maneuvers outside of the _Nirvana _was almost the same as before.

'_Rookies… can't they get anything right?' _she thought as nearly half of her team, the newer part, went off on a direction completely different from the one stated in the current formation.

Quickly opening a comm-link to the rest of her team she started relaying her instructions as calmly as she could, even when half of the fools she was training simply didn't seem to get the idea, as was demonstrated by a volley of stupid comments directed at her.

'_Don't rise… don't… these idiots must be treated with respect, no matter how stupid they are…'_

She really shouldn't even have been out there, Meia should have been the one in charge of this particular training session, but she was currently busy overseeing some new technology for the Dreads, making sure the techies, knowing of the theory but inexperienced in the practice of piloting, wouldn't screw up. So Barnette had been selected to take her place, to deal with a bunch of inept fools that could barely even pilot a Dread without-

Suddenly, an image of a rather plain and unremarkable young pilot appeared on Barnette's screen, shaking her out of her increasingly angry thoughts.

The rookie, without bothering to even introduce herself properly (for indeed Barnette didn't even know her name) simply started raving:

"_Ma'am, look! Look! I just saw a grey dot over there! And it's getting closer! What do we do?"_

Ignoring the rookie's continuous ranting; Barnette peered out of her Dread's main window, and saw it.

A very small grey dot was fast approaching the vicinity of the _Nirvana_, and she, caught up in her own thoughts, had completely missed it. As the dot came close enough to take an actual form before her eyes, she saw that it wasn't actually a ship, but a small transport pod

'_There aren't any scheduled arrivals for today, or the rest of the week… what's a pod doing here? No matter… if it isn't authorized then we've got to intercept it.'_

"_Ma'am… uh… what were we supposed to do again?"_

Without bothering to respond, Barnette unceremoniously blocked the rookie's comm-link with the press of a button. After doing that, she quickly opened a comm-link of her own, directed at all of her (very few) non-trainee pilots.

"Alright, all of you; we've got an unauthorized transport pod closing in on the _Nirvana_. I doubt it could cause trouble, but it's our duty to check it out. Now, I want a couple of you to stay here and herd the rookies back into the _Nirvana_. I'm afraid that they're… _inexperienced _enough to cause an accident if left alone even for the short time it will take us to deal with the pod. The rest of you, follow me."

After several affirmative responses, she set course for the pod, three other Dreads following her closely.

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**Military transport pod, now approaching the **_**Nirvana**_**'s immediate vicinity, just a minute later**…

Hibiki watched the four approaching Dreads with mixed emotions. He had recognized the lead Dread as Barnette's, but he wasn't sure that was a good thing. When he had last seen Barnette he really hadn't bothered with seeing how much her mistrust of men had diminished. He just hadn't been interested. Now, two years later, unauthorized, and looking as he did, things didn't look good. If Barnette didn't trust him… or worse, didn't recognize him, things could go very wrong.

'_I'll just have to convince her. One way or another, I'm certain I'll-'_

Suddenly, the pod's computer's voice rang out, shaking Hibiki out of his thoughts:

"_Receiving incoming transmission… Accept? Deny?"_

'_A transmission? Oh… they're right in front of me now…'_

"Very well. Accept," he ordered the computer, as the four Dreads started surrounding the pod.

As soon as he said that a holographic screen showing the image of a green haired woman was projected in front of him (the pod not having an actual physical plasma screen). Before Hibiki could even begin to say anything the woman began talking, first in a formal tone, then in her usual form of speech:

"_This is Barnette Orangello, third-in-command of the Dread forces of the ship Nirvana. By Mejerran law I demand that you identify yourself and explain your reasons for being here. Failure to comply will result in a use of force. That means that you either take off the hat that's obscuring your face and show me who you are and what the hell you're doing here, or I have every right to blow you to smithereens."_

'_Here's the moment of truth. I hope she recognizes me…'_

With a slightly mocking tone he answered the Dread pilot: "Why, Barnette, I know we never were the best of friends, but such threats are _wounding_, don't you think?"

Then, with a perfectly prepared smirk, Hibiki lifted his hat slightly, without completely taking it off, and showed his face to Barnette.

At first the Dread pilot just looked at him strangely, but then, as she took in his features, recognition began to show on her face, and then surprise. In a few seconds her mouth was hanging open.

Before Hibiki could make a mocking comment about that, however, she quickly composed her facial expression, and said the only word that could apparently come out of her mouth.

"_**You!"**_

"Why, yes, it's me. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like you to let me go through."

As could be expected, Barnette's surprise started fading into anger, increased by Hibiki's mocking tone and matching smirk.

"_Why should I do that? I mean, you left us with barely a message. If I recall correctly, all Bart, Duero, and Dita got was a notice from some government agent saying that you were off on some stupid mission and probably wouldn't be back for a while. That was two years ago. _Two years!_"_

Hibiki's smirk disappeared completely, and he answered in a serious tone.

"Yes, I did leave you. However, I must say that you're a bit… off in your argument. I was given an offer, and I accepted. Seconds later I was being dragged off to the mission ship, without any chance to even pack my stuff, much less give a proper goodbye. As for the two year period… do you think I actually had any control over how long the mission took?"

In fact, that was not what Hibiki really wanted to say to Barnette at all. What he really wanted to do was ask how come she was being foolish enough to try and block his entrance on the stupid grounds of "not saying goodbye", ask how she dared to label the mission, _his_ mission (perhaps the most important one to have ever been charged upon the Taraaku military) as _stupid_, tell her that the sacrifices he had made in said mission had probably saved _her _life in the long run… But he realized that would get him nowhere, so he softened his words, and spoke in a completely collected fashion. And now he waited for an answer.

Then…

"_Alright … perhaps that wasn't the best of arguments, but here's another. Even though you certainly seem to know the things you should, how do I know you're the real Hibiki, and not some impostor trying to wreak havoc on the _Nirvana_? I mean, it's been two years, and yet you look at least a decade older."_

Hibiki raised an eyebrow.

"Good… good. Alright, here's a deal, you let me through and I'll answer your questions."

'_Some of them anyway…'_

Barnette thought it over for a minute, but could apparently find nothing wrong with the offer.

"_Very well. We'll escort the pod to the Nirvana and then deal with you appropriately. You'll also have to undergo a scanner sweep, just to make sure you have nothing dangerous on you."_

'_She's treating me like I'm some random criminal, but there's nothing much that I can do about that right now. Still, I'm certain I'll be able to outmaneuver her inside of the _Nirvana_, where there are more sensible people than her, and where there won't be any Dread laser cannons pointed at me.'_

"I see nothing wrong with that," responded Hibiki, "so… deal?"

"_Deal."_

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**The **_**Nirvana**_**'s main hangar, fifteen minutes later**…

A small group of Dread pilots commanded by Barnette Orangello, all carrying their standard laser guns, stood around a small Taraaku transport pod, waiting rather impatiently for its doors to open.

When they did, however, the pilots weren't at all prepared for the sight they beheld.

Out of the pod came walking a man clothed completely in black. Black hat, black boots, black gloves, black trench coat, everything. He stood taller than all of them, and carried himself with a fair amount of dignity. He took a few steps into the hangar until he finally stopped, waiting patiently.

Even Barnette was surprised. During her conversation with Hibiki she had only seen his face, but now… she just didn't know what to think. Still, she had a job to do, and Hibiki had yet to fulfill his part of the deal. Quickly, she grabbed a small multi-use (blood and weapons) scanner that had been strapped to her belt and advanced on Hibiki. When she was close enough, she activated the scanner and started outlining Hibiki's body with it, careful not to actually touch him with the scanner, which could cause interference.

A few seconds later, the scanner beeped, and showed its statistics on its screen.

Clean. Completely clean.

"Well, there were no weapons on you alright, but that doesn't tell me that you are the real… you. I'll need to carry out a blood test."

Without saying anything, Hibiki pulled back the right-arm sleeves of his coat and shirt, and showed the veins of his wrist to Barnette.

She pressed a small button on the scanner, and a small needle came out of its bottom side. Without much preamble she grabbed the scanner and stuck the tip of the needle on one of the veins on Hibiki's wrist. She left it there for a few seconds as the scanner attempted to match Hibiki's blood with the data stored on its small hard drive.

Another beep. Barnette withdrew the needle and examined the scanner, her eyes widening with surprise at what she saw.

The blood matched perfectly with the data. The man in front of her was Hibiki Tokai. She looked at him in the eye, trying to make her expression as unreadable as possible.

"I guess it really is you."

Hibiki smirked.

"Did you ever _really _doubt it?"

"I'm not about to tell you," she answered, "now, even though I know you're not an impostor, you still have to answer my questions, especially why you look like you do. However, I've no authority to interrogate anyone, so I'll take you to the Captain."

Hibiki gave her a mocking sigh.

"And still you treat me like a criminal… but a deal's a deal. Take me to Magno if you wish, I did kind of miss the old woman, anyway."

Barnette's expression tightened. In her opinion Hibiki was being as insolent as ever, except he was now combining that insolence with mocking and wit, and that was making her angrier by the minute.

"Very well," she said, then turned towards her pilots and dismissed them, saying that Hibiki wasn't dangerous.

As the pilots left, she turned her attention back to Hibiki.

"You can come with me now, but I'll keep my gun out of its holster, so be careful about what you do."

Then, without waiting for a response, she started walking out of the hangar in the direction of the bridge.

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, but said nothing and simply followed her.

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**The **_**Nirvana**_**'s main hallway (nearing the bridge entrance), five minutes later**…

As Hibiki followed Barnette to the bridge, ignoring the funny looks he got from several passing women and (unsurprisingly) men, he pondered on what had happened in recent moments. His weapons, made of undetectable and incredibly expensive metal alloys, had completely evaded Barnette's scanner, allowing him to continue carrying them, and stopping the pilots that had been around him from getting suspicious of his motives. This in turn allowed him to remain inside the _Nirvana _without being a prisoner (not that he couldn't free himself, it was just that, to him, it would not be worth the effort if it could actually be avoided). Still, he didn't really consider his ability to get Barnette to let him inside the _Nirvana_ as something to be proud of. Even though he _had _managed to get inside the pirate ship, the amount difficulty it took him, even with someone as stubborn as Barnette, was showing him an evident lack in his persuasion skills. He supposed that had to do with the fact that, on his mission, to "persuade" someone meant pressing a gun against their forehead and ordering them to speak, or else.

'_No matter. Dialogue was never really my forte, but that can be fixed, even if it will take a while.'_

Still, there was something about Barnette that had not been there before. As Hibiki had not-so-subtly goaded her throughout their dialogue during Barnette's transmission, and then later inside the main hangar, he had noticed something that he had failed to see on her before, and that reminded him heavily of his old self.

'_Arrogance. She is nearly as arrogant as I was before; it's just that I never noticed such a thing on my first stay on the _Nirvana _because I was just as arrogant myself…'_

He hated to think that he had ever been as arrogant and foolishly stubborn, not because he thought he hadn't been, but because thinking such a thing inevitably led his mind to the memories of the impressive and painful changes he had undergone in his mission.

'_Grim thoughts again… I really shouldn't think them, but with a mind like mine, full of bad memories, is that even possible?'_

He resisted the urge to sigh, and tried to amuse himself by thinking about how funny Barnette's expression would look if he told her that with a small flick of his wrists and a quick movement of his arms, he could slice her head clean off. Not that he would ever tell her that, or worse yet, actually slice her head off, but it was still a rather funny thought.

"We're here."

'_What? Oh… we _are_.'_

Apparently he had been so busy with his own thoughts that he had failed to notice just how close they had been getting to the bridge. Now that he looked around, he saw the steel doors right in front of him.

"Let's go," said Barnette, "The Captain's on the bridge. I'll take you to her and _she'll _ask the questions."

Hibiki shrugged.

"As you wish," he said, and then they both went in.

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A/N: And that's that. Drop a review if you want, or go the next chapter. Just make sure you review, either in this chapter or the next. ;)

- KW


	3. Our Darkness: Demons on the Cross

**A/N: **A collection of scenes from the never fully realized re-write to The Darkness in All of Us. Enjoy.

**Scenes**

"_And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many."-_** Mark 5:9**

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**On Darkness**

'_Hello.'_

"N-not… again…"

I stumbled through the darkness, not even aware of my surroundings. All I knew was that this… this had happened before, almost every night. At first I had been able to fight them off, but now…

'_They've left you to rot, you know. After you fell… they abandoned you.'_

"Th-that's a lie…"

'_Really, now? Do you see them here? Do you think you're with them?'_

"Yes…"

'_Wrong as always, Hibiki Tokai.'_

The darkness parted.

"Where-"

'_Terminal Dogma, my friend. Terminal Dogma.'_

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**On Servitude**

They spoke to me, and I drowned myself in their voices.

I knew not who I was, or where I had come from, indeed, all I knew was that _they _were here, and that was all that mattered.

'_And there went out another __**horse that was red**__: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword. Do you accept this… burden?'_

They spoke in dual voices, and I could barely understand their meaning, so lost was I in the glory their aura projected unto me. I could, at that point, only agree.

"Yes, Master."

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**On Pride**

Fools. All of them fools.

They, who thought they could tame the darkness.

They, who thought they could master the word of demons.

They, who in their arrogance and pride thought that they could ever be equal to our greatest Foe, for indeed He lied to them, and told them that He would receive them.

They, who thought they could defy the Devil.

I kicked the decapitated body before me. The priest had never stood a chance.

Silly little humans. Seek ye not the depths of the darkness, lest you find what lies within.

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**On Freedom**

I brought my sword down upon the creature, again and again, my pace unrelenting.

I could not afford to lose my advantage. This… this was my only chance.

I drew blood once more. My enemy had become defenseless by now, just as I had been defenseless when he had first taken me. But still, I brought my sword down on him, feeling no real emotion. No rage, no pain. This creature had left me empty, devoured every part of me.

I hated that.

I had greatly desired to feel good when I killed him.

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**On Masks**

_How long the time seems… how dark the Shadow! How straight the eagle flies, how straight towards his Arrow!_

_How long the night is… why is this passage so narrow? How strange my body feels… impaled upon the Arrow!_

I threw the dead body of another Earthling aside. I had cut his chest open – a fatal wound.

Looking around, I saw that the rest of them had fallen – either by my own sword or by shots fired by the women.

And indeed, the latter were emerging from behind their firing positions. At first, there were only Mejerran soldiers, but soon the room was filled with familiar faces. They were walking toward me, I realized, probably wondering who I was.

I suppressed a sigh. I had planned to slay the Earthlings and escape on the Wraith with few delays, but it seems I was doomed to face my past, if only for a few moments.

I turned around.


	4. Fugazi: All Fucked Up, All Screwed Up

**Prologue**

**Two years after Harvest's defeat…**

**Taraaku Flagship **_**The Aleksander**_**, high orbit over the planet of Tarak**…

"_Master Tokai, the female forces are advancing, and we are expected to come under heavy attack from them and the People's Militia in just a few hours."_

"_I… I know."_

"_You have to make a choice, Master. Your father, our Dear Leader Lord Grandpa, is dead, and everything leads us to believe that your uncle Jin suffered the same fate."_

"…"

"_As your highest ranking military advisor, I only see two viable choices laid bare for us… our forces could attempt to bypass the blockade set by those traitors from the People's Militia and… surrender… to the advancing women, or you could declare war. I calculate that we have enough forces to fight the women to a stalemate, especially if the People's Militia decides to attack at the same time, which would lead both our enemies into committing forces to engage each other. This would, in the end, force both the women and the People's Militia to fall back and regroup for another attack. We could use the time that grants us to re-supply our fleet and finish training the new recruits. This would, however, ruin any chance of negotiation."_

"_I…"_

"_It's your choice, Master Tokai."_

_Hibiki buried his face in his hands. For once in his life he did not know what to do… he could order his forces to attempt to bypass the blockade the rogue People's Militia had set up and attempt to reach the women, but not only would that cause the loss of many men, but also put them at the mercy of the women when they… surrendered. _

_His other choice was war. War on the Mejerran women. Maybe even war on his female friends in the Nirvana, if they decided to take sides. Still, if he could hold on long enough for the fleet to be re-supplied and for the hundreds of new recruits to be trained, he could crush the People's Militia and be able to stand against the women, to eliminate their presence from Taraaku space and hit their own planet, perhaps even force them to sue for peace… there was no question. He would not lose his men and his dignity by surrendering. He would fight, and he would win… or die trying._

_And so it was that, led blindly by his pride, Hibiki Tokai made the worst mistake of his life…_

"_Prepare a transmission to the women. We'll fight to the bitter end."_

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A/N: Well, the overall good reviews I got prompted me to upload more material. This one's the prologue to Fugazi, a fic some of you might remember; as it was the last Vandread fic I uploaded before deleting everything. The title comes from the epic song of the same name composed by the progressive rock band Marillion.

Cheers,

-KW


	5. His Finest Hour

**Disclaimer: No, I don't own Vandread.**

**A/N: **This is one of two ideas (never posted here, so its completely new material for you guys) I had that featured Hibiki being a traitor in the service of Tarak's Army. The ideas diverge when it comes to the themes they explore – in this one; Hibiki is fanatically loyal to Tarak, but doesn't actively betray the Nirvana, and its inhabitants, rather opting to hide his thoughts and wait for his chance, which appears when the ship comes under attack by Taraaku forces. Thus the title, "His Finest Hour".

In the other one, he is actually a full-fledged spy, and his arrival on the Nirvana was actually a carefully concocted plot by the military in order to replace the void of information left by B.C., who they suspected to have had a change of loyalties. Both ideas are written down in one-shot form, and both of those one-shots are incomplete.

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**His Finest Hour**

Hibiki Tokai sat on his bunk on the men's empty quarters, or rather, prison cell, in the Nirvana, nursing his wounds... and his pride.

It had been a while since Duero had discharged him from the medical facility after his fight with Rabat. Since then he had stalked off to the men's quarters, gladly finding them empty, and had stayed there, pondering what had happened.

In all honesty, he could not see how he could have avoided the humiliation. Not without breaking his act.

That bastard… he could have killed Rabat easily, but he had to follow his orders, to take the beating, to look like a fool and be humiliated before a bunch of... of… _women._ All of it to preserve the false image he wore.

All in the name of the Fatherland. The Glorious Fatherland.

He sighed as he recalled the events that had led up to this situation... events that dated back to when his grandfather had ordered him to go to the city and make a life for himself.

The strange thing was, it was all a stroke of blind luck. Had he not been in the right place at the right time, he might have ended up in the assembly lines for years to come, and would have probably become the kind of person he was acting as…

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_He remembered being inside a military factory, moving mechanical pieces around, with his hands when he could, with machines when they were too large._

_He remembered being vaguely annoyed at the time. He had been about to sneak off for some food pills to appease his hungry stomach, and, considering the amount of people working in the factory, he would have probably been able to get the pills and return without anyone noticing anything. When he was about to do it, however, the factory manager's voice rang out, saying that a military officer had come to inspect them and, for some unfathomable reason, wanted everyone on the factory under the sixteen year mark to be lined up and shown before him. Fortunately (though it certainly did not seem that way at the time) Hibiki fit that criteria, and thus had to report to the bridge manager, ending any chance of getting away._

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Hibiki chuckled as he remembered. He had been such an _idiot _back then… unable to recognize the opportunity given to him, caring only about feeding himself…

'_But I've changed… God, I've changed. And I owe it all to Lord Grandpa and the Fatherland…'_

He smiled as he continued his reminiscence…

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_He remembered being placed in a horizontal line along with the rest of the (rather few) third-class citizens his age by the factory manager, and ordered to stand still._

_Then _he _had arrived. He was a large, muscled bald man with a massive mustache, and on his uniform were pinned dozens of decorations. The factory manager insisted in calling him "Commander", nothing more._

_He had grumbled a bit about being forced to sink as low as searching in the factories for "recruits", but then he had proceeded to inspect the group of workers before him._

_One by one he sent them away, deeming them worthless, until his gaze finally turned to Hibiki. He studied him for a moment, his eyes holding a glimmer of… recognition?_

_In the end, he stopped staring and nodded. Then he turned to the factory manager._

"_I want this one. The rest of them can leave."_

_The manager nodded frantically, eager to please._

_Though he had not been overly bright at the time, Hibiki was smart enough not to say anything. This "Commander" was from the military, and looked extremely dangerous. Though Hibiki did not particularly fear injury, he didn't want to end up dead._

_So when the "Commander" left, never to be seen by him again, and he was escorted by a pair of armed soldiers from the Elite Corps into a fortified military installation, Hibiki Tokai kept his mouth shut._

_It was, perhaps, the best decision he'd ever made._


	6. Fugazi: Trudging Through the Ashes

**A/N: **So... Chapter I of Fugazi. Woefully short, but it makes me think I shouldn't have deleted it. Hibiki becoming Emperor of Tarak was, perhaps, one of my best and most plausible ideas.

/strokes ego/

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**Chapter I: Trudging Through the Ashes**

**Two years later…**

_Moon SV-426, military colony of Imperial Tarak…_

A lone figure walked through the wreckage that composed the remains of the colony of SV-426.

His clothing was mostly black, but he was also clad with a brown leather trenchcoat, ripped on many places. His face was covered in dirt, blood, and grime – the escape pod that had brought him here had malfunctioned and its landing had been… less than pleasant.

He looked around, observing the wasteland created when the women bombarded the moon, only a few weeks ago.

His name was Hibiki Tokai.

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Hibiki sighed. He had wandered the dead colony for a day, finding nothing that could get him off it and back into space.

Still, there was hope. Though Imperial Tarak's flagship, the Aleksander, had certainly been destroyed, the same could not be said for the fighting force that had been engaging the women. As he recalled, they were overwhelmingly superior in number to the female fleet they had been engaging. Indeed, it had probably defeated them, or at least survived, and was looking for him. He would soon be rescued.

'_**Don't be foolish. After the Aleksander was hit they are certain to have followed the orders **_**you **_**set in place – to retreat in order to minimize the losses a sudden lack of leadership can incur. They probably think you're dead. You're stranded here.'**_

Hibiki sighed. It was the Voice again. It had started talking to him around the middle of the first year of the war, and had not stopped since then. While Hibiki had shrugged off the fact that this probably meant he was going insane, he found that the Voice's brutally honest comments could certainly be… annoying. And at this point, he was really not in the mood.

'_Shut up you damn ghost. They'll come. I know they will. Their loyalty to me is unfailing.'_

He heard the voice chuckle in his head.

'_**My… my… my… aren't you just like your father? I can only imagine what he thought of the loyalty of the People's Militia, and… ooops, now he's dead.'**_

'_Fuck off! My father made a mistake, yes, but this is different. My warriors have proven themselves time and again-'_

'_**And yet their loyalty probably dissipated as soon as they saw the Aleksander being hit. Don't be foolish.'**_

"Argh!"

In anger and frustration, with the Voice and with himself, Hibiki kicked a nearby piece of rubble. The thing flew off into the distance, but his foot hurt. A lot.

"Fuck!"

'_**For such a good strategist, your actions appear to be very predictable. Now calm yourself, and look around… do you see anything that may help us get out of this Godforsaken rock?'**_

Hibiki took a few deep breaths, and then looked around, observing his surroundings. There were many things that could have helped, but most of them were unusable thanks to the women's massive bombardment.

'_Nothing… there's nothing. We're stuck here.'_

Silence. Then…

'_**Well, it had to happen someday…'**_

"Huh?"

'_**That stupid decision you made two years ago, when you let your pride overrule your judgment, has finally brought about your end. When the few food pills you carry with you are finally consumed, it'll be over for you… for us.'**_

Hibiki could not think of anything to argue against that. The Voice was right. He might as well accept his mistake.

'_Perhaps… there is nothing I can do, however. I made a choice and stuck by it. It turned out to be the wrong one, and now I'm suffering the consequences. I hope tha-'_

'_**Wait! Look up at the sky!'**_

Hibiki did, seeing nothing at first, but then noticing a small dot, rapidly approaching and growing larger and larger by the second.

'_Yes! I told you they would come! I – oh… oh shit… oh shit… oh__**shit**__.'_

The approaching ship was finally coming into view.

'_**Well, I'll be damned…'**_

It was the _Nirvana_.

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End file.
